Antonia Pantesco

29 November 2016

Mr. Gunsher

The Pay Discrepancy Between Genders

Vice President Joe Biden once said “Equal pay for equal work. It’s common sense. It’s also

overdue. Let’s close the gap and let’s do it now.” (@VP). Women are steadily earning lower salaries than

men when attaining the same occupations with similar credentials, violating the idea of equality and equal

rights. Years after the women’s rights movement, there is still inequality in pay between the genders.

From CEOs to top soccer players, women are receiving a reduced paycheck because of the lack of a Y

chromosome. Kevin Miller, researcher for Women’s Policy Research, says women make on average 80%

of males’ salary. The pay gap is not supposed to close until 2059 because there is not a consensus on how

to fix the discrepancy (Miller). Many citizens are fighting for balanced wage and fair rights, because

females deserve equal pay for equal work.

Women are disfavored and considered inferior even when their credentials are identical, because

of the biology of being female. Barbara Wagner, chief economist with a masters in economics, cited a

study that shows these prejudices. Employers received identical copies of resumes, the only difference

being half had a female name while the other half had a male name. They found that males were more

likely to be offered jobs, and their pay was 7-15% higher, if females were even offered the job (Wagner).

These employers give males higher offers, no matter abilities. Similar study done by D.M. Neumark used

identical male and female resumes for a job at a high-class restaurant. Females had a 40% lower chance

of getting an interview than men, and 50% lower for a job offer (Blau). No matter the job level, there’s

still superiority seen in men.

The gap is also seen in more specialized jobs. Evan Davis, freelance journalist for sports, found

that the US soccer teams have one of the most extreme gaps. The men’s team makes $7,500-$14,000 per

win, $5,000-6,500 for ties, and $4,000 per loss. The women’s team makes $1,350 per win, but nothing for
a tie or loss. Also, only the men’s team gains money for each point scored in the World Cup.

Additionally, the men’s team only made it to round 16, earning $9 million. The US women’s team won

the entire FIFA World Cup, making $2 million (Davis). The same amount of time and effort put in as a

soccer player, and even when women came out superior, the Y chromosome is dominant and rewarded

higher.

This pay discrepancy is not solely impacted by gender, but also state, ethnicity, and age. Kevin

Miller found that the average 80% is nationwide. The American Community Survey found that each state

has its own average earnings ratio, with 23 states (including DC) above this average with New York the

highest at 89%, while the rest are below average with Wyoming at the lowest of 64%. The earning ratio

has also been found to decrease with age. Until the age of 35, women make 90% of male’s earnings. Once

they hit 35, the percent drops to 76-81%. There is even a gap between women, The largest gap being

Hispanic/Latina women, making 54% of white male wages, while Asian women make 85% (Miller). This

shows that the wage discrepancy is not only violating equal rights because of gender, but also has a hint

of racism and ageism involved.

The pay gap is largely influenced by a company/manager’s involvement in making salaries.

When companies create salaries, they have the ability to make pay secrecy, allowing women to avoid

perceptions of the unequal gap. Marlene Kim, professor of economics with a PhD, cited a study showing

that males earn on average $28.32/hour while females earn around $21.97/hour (Kim). Maura Belliveau,

professor at LIU Brooklyn, found that companies with higher discretion over pay showed higher wage

gaps. Her study showed that managers believe that women employees care more about their families than

tangible outcomes, even when they have no evidence of this. These managers are rationalizing the gap by

unbacked beliefs. Belliveau found that a social account, a justification for lower pay based on limited

quantity a company has for pay, is commonly used to rationalize the gap. When managers were allowed a

social account, men made 71% of the earnings available while females earned 29% (Belliveau). This

shows that when the excuse of a social account is allowed, managers believe their inequality is

rationalized, so the gender pay gap increases more, paying women less.
 The gender wage gap violates equal rights of a human being. The Fourteenth Amendment says

that “...Nor shall any State deprive any person of life, liberty, or property, without due process of law; nor

deny to any person within its jurisdiction the equal protection of the laws.” (U.S. Constitution) Giving

women unequal pay is abridging the equality, and privileges because of the biology of being a women.

The equality quoted at the end of the amendment is not present when males are placed above females

economically. Also, they are substantially depriving these women of the equality of life, by using small

discrimination that puts a limit on their capabilities to move forward. From a historic perspective, the

issue of inequality for women has been present and tried to be solved for years, especially since the

1970s. According to Eric Wohlenberg, professor at the University of Indiana, The Equal Rights

Amendment states that “Equality of rights under the law shall not be denied or abridged by the United

States or by any state on account of sex”. 35 of the needed 38 states ratified the amendment as of 1971,

making it unsuccessful as of then (Wohlenberg). The gender wage gap falls under this amendment, the

only issue being that since it has not been ratified, companies can not be tried against it yet.

In opposition, social psychologists say that gender pay gap is caused by women’s internal

attributions, like characteristics, traits, etc. According to Michelle Travis, Co-Director of the University of

San Francisco Labor Law Program, books have been written for this, like Women Don’t Ask. It explains

how it is a woman’s fault for receiving lower pay, because they “don’t ask” for higher, and it lays out the

things women are doing wrong that cause lower pay. These books act as “treatment plans” for these

women who are receiving this lower pay (Travis). They see the pay gap as self advocacy that is their

responsibility. However, Travis mentions Sheryl Sandberg, who believes in the self-advocacy, but she

opposes this claim by pointing out how female gender norms say that women are supposed to care for

others, not themselves. When they do advocate for themselves, their employers, whether male or female,

react disapprovingly. Hannah Bowles’ study found that people oppose working with women who have

tried for higher pay because they are perceived as difficult and bothersome when of their act of self-

advocacy. When women do try for higher salaries, they receive opposite reactions than men (Travis). This

opposition shows the overall sexism of the issue.

 It is argued that education level rationalizes the gender pay gap, saying that women get lower

education, meaning they should not get paid equally. According to Francine Blau, Professor of

Economics and Industrial and Labor Relations, even though there were more women who graduated high

school, less were likely to finish or go to college. Although this was once true, this is proven irrelevant

now because women are over half of college students and a large portion of “male” professions. It is

proven that educational attainment lowers the gap by 7%, working opposite of expected because women

are getting higher education (Blau).

A solution to the pay discrepancy could be pay transparency, as women will know how large the

difference is between their male co-workers and their own paychecks. When transparency is present,

women are aware and have the ability to fight for the same pay as male counterparts. Marlene Kim cited a

study that found when pay secrecy is banned, males earn $30.15/hour while females earn $24.20/hour,

bringing the ratio from 77% to 80% (Kim), showing that pay transparency could be very significant.

According to Barbara Wagner, if transparent determinations are given before a job is given, females will

have more power to negotiate salaries. If males and females are holding the same jobs, pay should be

determined by quantitative, criteria like years of experience and education (Wagner). Having a concrete

salary set before giving jobs makes it easier to close the gap. Manager perceptions should be eliminated in

pay altogether, as they can cause sexism.

Re-introducing the Equal Rights Amendment, could help guarantee equality between genders,

helping to diminish the pay discrepancy. States containing a simplified ERA in their state constitutions,

have a lower wage gap than other states, according to Ernest Wohlenberg. Florida, who has a simplified

ERA, has one of the highest earning ratio at 87%, 17% higher than average (Wohlenberg). The previous

failure of the ERA was based on religious reasons like past societal gender roles, but now these concepts

have disappeared, giving an ERA hope.

In conclusion, females earn less than males because of employer’s unbacked beliefs and personal

prejudices, infringing on women’s equal rights given in the constitution. Even with equal education and

experience that some argue women do not have, women earn a significantly lower amount than deserved.
The wage gap will not shrink without direct force, making the ERA one that should be reconsidered for

the sake of every women in our country.

 Work Cited

Belliveau, Maura. “TEDxEmory - Maura Belliveau - A new explanation for the wage gap between men and women.”
Youtube, uploaded by TEDx Talks, 16 August 2011, https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=kIo-XjNRfAM

Blau, Francine D., and Lawrence M. Kahn. "The Gender Pay Gap: Have Women Gone As Far As They Can?."
Academy Of Management Perspectives 21.1 (2007): 7-23.Business Source Complete. Web. 13 Nov. 2016.

Davis, Evan. “Women Earn The Glory While Men Earn The Money in U.S. Soccer” FiveThirtyEight. 31 Mar 2016. 17
Nov 2016.

Janssen, Simon, Simone Tuor Sartore, and Uschi Backes-Gellner. "Discriminatory Social Attitudes And Varying
Gender Pay Gaps Within Firms." ILR Review 69.1 (2016): 253-279.Business Source Complete. Web. 16
Nov. 2016.

Kim, Marlene. "Pay Secrecy And The Gender Wage Gap In The United States." Industrial Relations 54.4 (2015):
648-667. Business Source Complete. Web. 10 Nov. 2016.

Miller, Kevin. "The Simple Truth about the Gender Pay Gap (Fall 2016)." AAUW: Empowering Women Since 1881.
AAUW, 15 Sept. 2016. Web. 13 Nov. 2016.

Travis, Michelle A. "Disabling The Gender Pay Gap: Lessons From The Social Model Of Disability." Denver
University Law Review 91.4 (2014): 893-923. Academic Search Complete. Web. 13 Nov. 2016.

U.S. Constitution. Art/Amend. XIV. Sec 1.

Wagner, Barbara. "The Complex Causes Of The Gender Pay Gap." Montana Business Quarterly 53.3 (2015):
16-18. Small Business Reference Center. Web. 13 Nov. 2016.

Wohlenberg, Ernest H. "Correlates Of Equal Rights Amendment Ratification." Social Science Quarterly (University
Of Texas Press) 60.4 (1980): 676-684. Business Source Complete. Web. 15 Nov. 2016.

@VP. “Equal pay for equal work. It's common sense. It's also overdue. Let's close the gap & let's do it now.
#EqualPayDay.” Twitter, 14 Apr. 2015, 12:56 p.m.,
https://mobile.twitter.com/VP/status/588022956812533760/photo/1?ref_src=twsrc%5Etfw